Hearings schedule and decisions

Our Fitness to Teach Publication Policy sets out how we communicate information about our fitness to teach cases to the public.

You can view our scheduled Fitness to Teach Hearings up to 7 days in advance by clicking on highlighted dates on the Hearings calendar. Please note that you will find the hearing day start time but not timing for individual cases as this varies according to events on the day.

Our Fitness to Teach hearing decisions and any consent orders (which are issues without the need for a hearing) are published below.

Fitness to Teach Panel (FtTP) Hearings -17,18 January 2018

In or around January 2017, whilst employed by Argyll and Bute Council as a teacher at XXXXXX XXXXXXX XXXXXX, XXXXXX you XXXX XXXXXXX did:

on 9 January 2017, discuss sensitive information with a vulnerable pupil

on dates unknown make unfounded allegations on numerous occasions about the attitudes and behaviours of other staff towards you, including:

claiming to several members of staff that XXX XXXXXXXX, XXXXXX XXXX XXXXXXX was having an affair with your “man”;

accusing a music teacher and learning centre of blanking you as they were friends with XXX XXXXXXXX;

accusing a classroom assistant of laughing at you as you were having XXX XXXXXXX;

accusing members of the PE department of looking at you in a sexual manner;

on 27 January 2017, refuse to follow a reasonable instruction by your line manager to meet with him.

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of breaching Parts 1.2, 2.1, 2.3, 4.1 and 4.3 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working days’ notice to GTCS if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.

On exact dates unknown between 2005 and 2013, whilst employed as Head Teacher of a North Lanarkshire Council Inclusion Support Base (ISB) you did:

introduce a voucher system which

was not used in its entirety for its intended purpose of rewarding attendance at the ISB;

was used by you to a value of approximately £700 for use which was not connected to work at the ISB;

was used by you to buy alcohol and food for occasions when you should have purchased those goods yourself;

you pressurised colleagues to misuse;

misuse school funds by

paying for a staff meal using said funds;

instructing a member of your staff to take action to create the impression that pupils had attended a staff meal at 1(b)(i) above when they had not;

misuse two vehicles owned by the ISB by

keeping said vehicles at your home address and using them to commute to work on a regular basis without informing your employer;

using said vehicles for your personal use not connected with work for ISB;

making said vehicles unavailable and forcing staff to continue to use their own vehicles for which they continued to submit claims for mileage at extra cost to your employer;

Between 2012 and 2013, during a disciplinary investigation you did:

state that pupils had been in attendance at end of term parties, when you knew they had not been;

state that you were informed that you should keep ISB vehicles at your home address for security purposes, when you knew you were not so informed;

On exact dates unknown between 2005 and 2013, whilst employed as Head Teacher of North Lanarkshire Council’s Inclusion Support Base, you did fail to follow appropriate procedures, by:

Introducing a voucher system which was

Unaccountable and contrary to the existing approved expenses system;

poorly managed by you and vouchers expired which resulted in financial loss;

purchasing a vehicle, namely a Ford Galaxy, for the ISB without undertaking a value for money exercise or completing a business case and without completing a post-purchase value for money review;

failing to implement a standard procedure or create an equivalent one in relation to the two vehicles which were owned by the ISB so that there is no record of use and no mileage log book;

failing to adhere to North Lanarkshire Council’s employment protocols by:

making employment appointments without conducting interviews;

contracting your relatives (namely son and daughter) without completing and submitting conflict of interest forms and without going through a competitive process;

employing your gardener without completing and submitting a conflict of interest form and without going through a competitive process;

employing staff on a short term basis without providing formal signed contracts or Service Level Agreements;

And in relation to

allegation 1 (b);

allegation 1 (c);

allegation 2;

above you were dishonest.

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of breaching Parts 1.3, 1.4, 1.6 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working day’s notice to GTC Scotland if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.

30 January

Registration category

Applicant for Registration - Secondary: Religious Education

Type of hearing

Conduct Full Hearing

Location

GTCS

Allegation

On or around 14 December 2007, at Oxford Crown Court, you were convicted upon indictment of:

1/1 Obtaining a money transfer by deception

1/2 Obtaining a money transfer by deception

1/3 Attempting to obtain property by deception

And you were sentenced at Oxford Crown Court on 17 January 2008 to:

1/1 Community sentence- Must carry out unpaid work for 150 hours

1/2 Community sentence- Must carry out unpaid work for 150 hours concurrent

1/3 Community sentence- Must carry out unpaid work for 150 hours concurrent

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of breaching Parts 1.3, 1.4 and 1.6 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working days’ notice to GTCS if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.

Type of hearing: A Procedural Hearing is to be held to consider the following applications:

An application on behalf of the Teacher under Rule 2.5.1(c) for the case to be cancelled;

An application on behalf of the Teacher under Rules 1.7.3 and 1.7.5 for an order to be made by the panel preventing the public disclosure of all aspects of proceedings, including the hearing being held in private; and

An application on behalf of the Teacher under Rule 1.7.29 (b) that the Teacher be treated as a vulnerable witness and for special measures to be adopted.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working days’ notice to GTCS if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.

In relation to applications for privacy, media are entitled to make representations to the Panel if they so wish. Further information can be found in the GTCS Conducting Hearings in Private Practice Statement:

Fitness to Teach Panel (FtTP) Hearings - 5, 7, 8 and 9 February 2018

Between 26 October 2009 and 22 August 2013. XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX, you did:

fail to follow XXXXXXXX Child Protection Guidelines after being informed by colleagues of an allegation of sexual misconduct
committed by staff member A against the son of staff member B;

advise colleagues that action was being taken in relation to the matter at allegation 1a above when in fact you knew
this was not correct and no action had been taken;

fail to follow XXXXXXXX Child Protection Guidelines after receiving a report that staff member A had posted inappropriate
photographs on Facebook with a former service user;

fail to follow XXXXXXXX Child Protection Guidelines after being informed by a staff member that service users had
engaged in a game of kissing and spin the bottle whilst on a weekend excursion run by staff member A;

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of
breaching Parts 1.3, 1.4, 2.4 and 2.6 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland's Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working days’ notice to GTCS if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.

Registration category: Applicant for Registration
Location: GTCS
Type of hearing: Matter to be considered
Full Hearing

On or around 17 May 2013, at Bromley Magistrates Court, you were convicted of the following offence:

“Between 04/08/2011 and 09/01/2013 at 16th Lewisham Scout Group, stole CASH to the value of £4,390 belonging to 16TH LEWISHAM SOUTH SCOUT GROUP contrary to section 1(1) and 7 of the Theft Act 1968”

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of breaching Parts 1.3, 1.4 and 1.6 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Between 14 August 2013 and 6 September 2013, both dates inclusive, while employed by [redacted] as an area cover teacher, at [school redacted], you did:

Confiscate Pupil G's mobile telephone, hold out your trousers and say to the said Pupil G, "If I put it down there, you won't get it back" or words to that effect;

Make an inappropriate comment to the said Pupil G, in that you did say, "I know this is a single period of maths -I bet you wish it was a double, but I have a wife" or words to that effect;

On various occasions, punch pupils on their arms, tickle female pupils and touch female pupils on their waists and shoulders;

Between 13 August 2012 and 13 September 2013, both dates inclusive, while employed by [redacted] as an area cover teacher, at [school redacted], you did:

Make an inappropriate comment to Pupil H, in that after Pupil H had put her mobile telephone under her skirt when you asked her to put it away, you did say, "I’m not afraid to go up there" or words to that effect;

Make an inappropriate comment to Pupil H, in that you did say that you would fill in the hole in her tights with marker pen and did say this while holding a marker pen 6 inches away from the said Pupil H's leg;

On various occasions, attempt to pull Pupil H's chair away;

Invite pupils to add you as a friend on Facebook.

Between 1 December 2011 and 31 January 2012, both dates inclusive, while employed by [redacted] as an area cover teacher at [school redacted], you did make the following comments to or about students:

During an S3 English class during a discussion regarding the model Katie Price you did say "She's got some t**** on her" or words to that effect;

During an S3 English class, you did:

discuss Pupil C's physical characteristics with other pupils in her presence;

say that Pupil C was fat or words to that effect;

say that you would "want Pupil C in your tug of war team" or words to that effect;

During a home economics class, you did discuss Pupil C with another pupil and did say, "tell her she's a fat mess." or words to that effect;

During an S4 maths class, you did allow pupils to discuss a violent sexual practice in explicit terms for an extended period, and did state "I wouldn't do it to my wife" or words to that effect;

During an S4 maths class, you did say to a pupil "at least I'm not a virgin " or words to that effect

And in light of the above, it is alleged that your fitness to teach is impaired and you are unfit to teach, as a result of breaching Parts 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, and 1.6 of the General Teaching Council for Scotland's Code of Professionalism and Conduct.

Members of the public and media are expected to give at least one working days’ notice to GTCS if they wish to attend a hearing in order to allow staffing arrangements to be put in place.